New Formal Ethics Opinion(s) from the Board of Professional Responsibility

There are three ways for TBALink members to get the full-text
versions of these opinions from the Web:

Do a key word search in the Search Link area of TBALink. This option will allow you to view and save
a plain-text version of the opinion.

Browse the Opinion List area of TBALink. This option will allow you to download the original
version of the opinion.

Click the URL at end of each Opinion paragraph below. This option
will allow you to download the original document.

Lucian T. Pera
Editor-in-Chief, TBALink

SUPREME COURT OF TENNESSEE STATE LIST FOR PERMISSION TO APPEAL
Court:TSC - Rules
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TSC_Rules/certlist_1002.wpdWILLIAM P. HENDERSON, et al. v. HENRY CLAY HART, JR.
Court:TCA
Attorneys:
James H. Kinnard, Lebanon, Tennessee, for the appellant, Henry Clay
Hart, Jr.
Michael L. DeBusk, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellees, William P.
Henderson and Lillian R. Henderson.
Judge: GODDARD
First Paragraph:
This appeal arises from an executory contract for the sale of real
property. Henry Clay Hart, Jr., the Appellant, appeals the judgment
from the Knox County Circuit Court in favor of William P. Henderson
and Lillian R. Henderson, the Appellees. Mr. Hart raises the issues
of whether the Trial Court had proper subject matter jurisdiction to
hear the case and whether the Court erred in finding that the
executory sales contract was no longer in effect. We affirm the
judgment of the Trial Court and remand for such further proceedings as
may be necessary consistent with this opinion. We adjudge costs of
appeal against Henry Clay Hart, Jr. and his surety.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/hendersonwil.wpdSTATE OF TENNESSEE v. CHRISTOPHER BENGTSON
Court:TCCA
Attorneys:
Julie A. Rice, Contract Appellate Defender (on appeal); Charles M.
Corn, District Public Defender; and William C. Donaldson, Assistant
Public Defender (at trial) for the appellant, Christopher Bengtson.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; R. Stephen Jobe,
Assistant Attorney General; Jerry N. Estes, District Attorney General;
and Richard C. Newman, Assistant District Attorney General, for the
appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
First Paragraph:
The defendant, Christopher Bengtson, was convicted by a McMinn County
jury of three counts of reckless endangerment committed with a deadly
weapon, a Class E felony. In this appeal as of right, the defendant
raises two issues: (1) whether the evidence was sufficient as a
matter of law to support the verdict; and (2) whether the trial court
erred in failing to merge the three counts into one. We conclude that
the evidence was sufficient as a matter of law for the jury to
conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was guilty of
felony reckless endangerment. We agree with the defendant and the
State that the three counts constituted a single course of conduct and
should have been merged into one. We therefore affirm the felony
reckless endangerment conviction for count one of the indictment but
vacate the convictions for counts two and three.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/bengtsonc.wpd
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DANIEL PATRICK BYRD
Court:TCCA
Attorneys:
J. Thomas Marshall, Jr., District Public Defender; and Nancy Meyer,
Assistant District Public Defender, Clinton, Tennessee, for the
appellant, Daniel Patrick Byrd.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Elizabeth B. Marney,
Assistant Attorney General; James N. Ramsey, District Attorney
General; and Jan Hicks, Assistant District Attorney General, for the
appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
First Paragraph:
The defendant was convicted of driving under the influence, second
offense, and received a sentence of eleven months and twenty-nine
days. The defendant was ordered to serve forty-five days in
continuous confinement and five days on the weekends, with the
remainder of his sentence to be served on probation. In this appeal
as of right, the defendant makes the following allegations of error:
(1) the trial court used an invalid judgment to elevate his DUI charge
to a DUI second; (2) the trial court's initial denial of an appeal
bond violated the Double Jeopardy Clause of the United States and
Tennessee Constitutions; and (3) the trial court incorrectly concluded
it was not authorized to grant work release or periodic confinement
during the defendant's mandatory minimum period of incarceration for
DUI. After a thorough review of the record, we conclude the trial
court did not commit the above errors and affirm the defendant's
conviction and sentence.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/byrddp.wpd
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. BILLY JOE DILL
Court:TCCA
Attorneys:
Ardena J. Garth, District Public Defender, and Donna Robinson Miller,
Assistant District Public Defender, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the
appellant, Billy Joe Dill.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General & Reporter; Patricia C. Kussmann,
Assistant Attorney General; William H. Cox, III, District Attorney
General; and Dean Ferraro, Assistant District Attorney, for the
appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WILLIAMS
First Paragraph:
The defendant pled guilty to one count of statutory rape and received
judicial diversion pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. S 40-35-313. However,
after receiving diversion and after his diversionary period had
expired, the defendant failed to comply with the Sex Offender
Registration and Monitoring Act. For this failure, he was indicted
and ultimately pled guilty to one count of violation of the Sexual
Offender Registration and Monitoring Act (Tenn. Code Ann. S 40-39-
108) but reserved one issue for appeal: Does the Sex Offender
Registration and Monitoring Act lawfully require a registrant to
remain on the registry after the original case was disposed of
pursuant to judicial diversion? Answering this question, we decide
that this defendant does not fairly fall within the ambit of Tenn.
Code Ann. S 40-39-102(2)(A) and therefore is not required to comply
with the Sex Offender Registration and Monitoring Act. Accordingly,
we reverse the judgment from the trial court.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/dillbj.wpd
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. GORDON SCOTT KATZ
Court:TCCA
Attorneys:
Nancy Meyer, Clinton, Tennessee, for the appellant, Gordon Scott Katz.
John Knox Walkup, Attorney General and Reporter, Michael J. Fahey, II,
Assistant Attorney General, Michael E. Moore, Solicitor General,
Elizabeth B. Marney, Assistant Attorney General, and Jan Hicks,
Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of
Tennessee.
Judge: OGLE
First Paragraph:
The appellant, Gordon Scott Katz, was found guilty by a jury in the
Criminal Court of Anderson County of one count of auto burglary, a
class E felony, and one count of theft under $500, a class A
misdemeanor. Subsequently, the trial judge granted the appellant's
motion for judgment of acquittal. The State appealed. This court
reversed the trial court's judgment of acquittal and remanded for
further proceedings. The appellant then moved for a new trial. The
trial court denied the appellant's motion for new trial, stating that
the opinion of this court mandated a reinstatement of the jury's
verdict.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/katzgs.wpd
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. ANTHONY LEE RICHARDSON
Court:TCCA
Attorneys:
Anthony Lee Richardson, Cleveland, Tennessee, Pro. Se.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter, R. Stephen Jobe,
Assistant Attorney General and Carl Petty, Assistant District Attorney
General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: OGLE
First Paragraph:
The appellant appeals the order of the Polk County Criminal Court
dismissing the appellant's appeal from the judgment of the Polk County
General Sessions Court finding the appellant guilty of telephone
harassment. Following a review of the limited record before this
court and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial
court.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/richardsonal.wpd
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. AMANDA LEE SUTTON
Court:TCCA
Attorneys:
Jerry H. Summers and Jimmy F. Rodgers, Jr., Chattanooga, Tennessee,
for the appellant, Amanda Lee Sutton.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Elizabeth B. Marney,
Assistant Attorney General; William H. Cox, III, District Attorney
General; Kelli Lavon Crandell Black, Assistant District Attorney
General; and Claire Hayes Brant, Assistant District Attorney General,
for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
First Paragraph:
The defendant, a former day care worker, pled guilty to Class D felony
child abuse for breaking the jaw of a two-year-old child in her care.
She was given a three-year sentence, to be served in split
confinement, with six months in the county workhouse and four years of
supervised probation. On appeal, the defendant raises the issues of
whether the trial court erred in considering the age, vulnerability,
and risk to the victim's life as a sentencing enhancement factor when
the offense was already classified according to the age of the victim,
and whether the trial court erred in failing to utilize alternative
sentencing. Based upon our review, we affirm the decision of the
trial court.
http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/suttonal.wpd

PLEASE FORWARD THIS E-MAIL!
Feel free to forward this Opinion Flash on to anyone you know
of with an e-mail address.

GET A FULL-TEXT COPY OF AN OPINION!
See the intrsuctions at the beginning of this edition of Opinion
Flash.

JOIN TBALink!
While Opinion Flash is a free service of the Tennessee Bar Association,
you must be a subscriber to TBALink, the premier Web site for
Tennessee attorneys, in order to access the full-text of the opinions
or enjoy many other features of TBALink. TBA members may join
TBALink for just $50 per year. To join, go to: http://www.tba.org/join.html/

SUBSCRIBE TO OPINION FLASH!
Would you like to receive the TBALink Opinion Flash free each
day by e-mail? Anyone, whether a TBA member or not, is welcome
to subscribe ... it's free!

For the Plain Text Version:
1) Send an e-mail message to: Opinion-Flash@tba.org
2) In the SUBJECT of the message type: SUBSCRIBE
3) Leave the body of the message blank

For the HTML Text Version:
1) Send an e-mail message to: Opinion-Flash@tba.org
2) In the SUBJECT of the message type: SUBSCRIBE HTML
3) Leave the body of the message blank

UNSUBSCRIBE TO OPINION FLASH? ... SURELY NOT!

To STOP receiving TBALink Opinion-Flash:
1) Send an e-mail message to: Opinion-Flash@tba.org
2) In the SUBJECT of the message type: UNSUBSCRIBE
3) Leave the body of the message blank